Roasted Red Pepper Chipotle Pasta Salad - From The “15-Minute Vegan Meals” Cookbook

If you’re looking for an incredibly flavourful and colourful dish to bring to your next gathering or to enjoy at home with family, this one is it! This Roasted Red Pepper Chipotle Pasta Salad is filled with tomatoes, cucumbers, corn, avocado, and dressed with a savoury and vibrant roasted red pepper and chipotle sauce.

This dish is one of 60 versatile, simple and FAST recipes that can be found in Janet Gronnow’s new cookbook, 15-Minute Vegan Meals. In Janet’s cookbook, there’s a huge variety of light meals and salads, cozy and warming soups and curries, incredibly yummy pasta dishes, tacos, flavourful bowls and more. With this cookbook, Janet aimed to create recipes that will please both vegans and non-vegans alike, with no shortage of satisfying recipes. She also includes numerous time-saving tips, from strategic ways to set up your cooking space, to super-fast ways to boost flavour easily.

And big news - the cookbook is now available internationally! You can find 15-Minute Vegan Meals on Amazon US, Amazon CA, Amazon Australia, and Amazon UK in addition to other retailers including Barnes & Noble in the US. Or you can order it through Book Depository, with free shipping worldwide.

And now, back to the recipe! This Roasted Red Pepper Chipotle Pasta Salad is a creamy pasta salad lover’s dream. The tangy and spicy sauce is perfect for this combination of veggies and pasta, with lots of texture and crisp too. The cilantro and scallions give it some extra flair, but feel free to substitute fresh parsley or omit them.

Putting Together This Roasted Red Pepper Chipotle Pasta Salad

This dish is super simple to make! While your pasta is cooking (make sure to salt the pasta water – it really makes a difference), chop your veggies/herbs and blend up the sauce.

I like to halve or quarter the tomatoes, and you’ll thinly slice the cucumbers to make them easy to eat. Feel free to slice or chop the roasted red peppers.

Next you’ll blend up the sauce. Simply add all the Dressing ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth.

Can You Adjust the Spice Level of This Recipe?

Yes! There’s a couple ways to increase the spice level of this recipe (it’s medium spice level as-is). Add some jalapeno (finely chopped) for some extra spice if you like, or alternatively add in one of the canned chipotle peppers in addition to the teaspoon of sauce.

To make this recipe less spicy, simply omit the (chipotle in adobo) sauce. You can substitute ¼ - ½ teaspoon smoked paprika into the dressing for a smoky touch.

INGREDIENTS

• PASTA
• 8 oz. (226 g) rotini pasta
• ½ tbsp (8 ml) avocado oil
• 2 cups (272 g) frozen corn
• Pinch of kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 cup (149 g) cherry or grape tomatoes
• ½ cup (160 g) roasted red peppers, drained well
• ½ seedless cucumber
• 1 avocado
• 2 tbsp (2 g) cilantro
• 2 tbsp (20 g) thinly sliced red onion (optional)
• 2 tbsp (6 g) sliced scallions, for serving (optional)
• DRESSING
• ¼ cup (60 ml) vegan mayo
• ¼ cup (60 ml) plan, unsweetened almond-based yogurt
• 1/3 cup (107 g) roasted red peppers, drained well
• 1 tsp sauce from a can of chipotles in adobo
• ½ tbsp (8 ml) lime juice
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1 ¼ tsp (4 g) garlic powder
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp dried parsley

METHOD

1. To prepare the pasta, fill a large pot with 2 inches (5 cm) of water, enough to fully submerge the pasta, cover, and bring to a boil. Add the rotini, stir and cover to bring back to a boil. Remove the lid and cook to al dente, according to the package directions. Drain and rinse the pasta in cool water.

2. Place a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the avocado oil and frozen corn to the pan and season the corn with a pinch of salt and pepper. Let these cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Transfer the corn to a large mixing bowl to cool.

3. Meanwhile, halve the tomatoes, chop the roasted red peppers, dice the cucumber and avocado, and finely chop the cilantro. Add these into the mixing bowl, along with the red onion, if using.

4. For the dressing, to a food processor or blender, add the mayo, yogurt, red peppers, adobo sauce, lime juice, salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin and parsley, and blend until smooth. Add the dressing and cooked pasta into the mixing bowl, and gently stir to incorporate the dressing. Top the salad with the sliced scallions, if using.

@janetsmunchmeals | www.munchmealsbyjanet.com

Janet is a long-time foodie and working mom, who is obsessed with creating simple, flavor-packed plant-based dishes that both vegans and non-vegans will love. Starting in 2017, Janet decided to turn my love of food and cooking into something she could share with the world through her blog and social pages.